Commentary: The right's answer to the Super Bowl halftime show is here. Bad Bunny has nothing to worry about

When it was announced successful the autumn that Puerto Rican vocalist and rapper Bad Bunny was chosen to header the Super Bowl LX halftime show, immoderate folks took it personally.

Why not an American popular prima (he is) who speaks English (he does) and likes the president (good luck, did you ticker the Grammy Awards?)?! The close felt slighted, again, this clip arsenic the unfortunate of a large left-wing conspiracy to crook football’s biggest nighttime against them.

Then Turning Point USA — the blimpish enactment founded by Charlie Kirk and helmed by his wife, Erika Kirk, pursuing his assassination — came up with an idea. They’d enactment connected their ain amusement successful the barn, truthful to speak. Performers’ sets would beryllium successful English, dissimilar astir of Bad Bunny’s material. And this large show of American-ness would instrumentality spot during the Super Bowl, stealing distant viewers and ratings from that different feline with the comic name.

On Monday, Turning Point yet announced the lineup for its counter-event, the “All-American Halftime Show.” Described by Fox News arsenic a “star-studded alternate to the Super Bowl halftime show,” the roster’s brightest luminary is Kid Rock, who hasn’t had a deed opus since Obama’s archetypal twelvemonth successful office. The remainder of the lineup consists of state artists you’ll apt person to Google to place (Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett). Their sets volition beryllium streamed unrecorded connected Sunday astir 5 p.m., the aforesaid clip Bad Bunny is slated to execute astatine Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium. It tin beryllium watched connected Turning Point USA’s YouTube, X and Rumble channels, alongside blimpish networks specified arsenic Daily Wire+, Real America’s Voice, TBN and OAN. Additional philharmonic entertainers volition beryllium announced, the organization’s website says.

Kid Rock erstwhile helium wasn’t wearing an American emblem arsenic a poncho.

(Pool Photo)

“We’re approaching this amusement similar David and Goliath,” Kid Rock (aka Robert Ritchie) said successful a statement. “Competing with the pro shot instrumentality and a planetary popular superstar is astir intolerable … oregon is it?”

It is impossible, of course. Bad Bunny (aka Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) is an American popular sensation who has conquered the globe with a vibrant premix of reggaeton, Latin pop, rap and R&B. The 31-year-old was Spotify’s most-streamed creator of 2025 and made past conscionable a mates of days agone astatine the Grammy Awards erstwhile helium became the archetypal Spanish-language creator to triumph medium of the year.

Sunday, helium volition scope an adjacent wider assemblage arsenic portion of the country’s most-watched tv lawsuit erstwhile the New England Patriots look disconnected against the Seattle Seahawks.

But Kid Rock, 55, appears to person precocious hopes, with an accidental to regain relevance apt astatine the apical of his privation list. There’s nary amended mode to summation attraction than ripping connected the astir fashionable creator around. “He’s said he’s having a creation party, wearing a dress, and singing successful Spanish?” said Kid Rock of Bad Bunny. “Cool. We program to play large songs for folks who emotion America.”

The “Bawitdaba” vocalist is acquainted with right-wing outrage implicit a halftime amusement wardrobe choice, and knows what it’s similar to person your patriotism questioned by primed mobs. In 2004, helium was 1 of respective performers flanking Super Bowl headliner Janet Jackson. He angered conservatives erstwhile helium wore a defaced American emblem arsenic a poncho and aboriginal tossed the flag/garment into the crowd.

But that was then, this is now. There are windmills to slay, crises to fabricate, rings to kiss. And headlining a spite performance provides a large distraction from the existent issues plaguing Trump’s presidency, beryllium it the soaring outgo of living, Americans killed by ICE agents nether his watch, oregon the nausea-inducing contents of the Epstein files.

Are we inactive talking astir those? Yes, we are. The New York Times identified much than 38,000 references to Trump, his household and his Mar-a-Lago Club successful the latest batch of emails, authorities files, videos and different records released by the Justice Department. Previous installments of the Epstein files, which the section released precocious past year, included 130 files with Trump-related references.

No wonderment his followers request a distraction.

Bad Bunny tin instrumentality the heat. He utilized his acceptance code astatine Sunday night’s Grammys ceremonial successful Los Angeles to condemn the Trump administration’s nationwide migration crackdown. “Before I accidental acknowledgment to God, I’m going to accidental ‘ICE out,’” helium said. “We’re not savages. We’re not animals. We’re not aliens. We are humans, and we are Americans.”

And besides Super Bowl headliners.